Transcranial volumetric imaging using a conformal ultrasound patch

Transcranial volumetric imaging using a conformal ultrasound patch

2024 May ; 629(8013): 810–818. doi:10.1038/s41586-024-07381-5. | Sai Zhou, Xiaoxiang Gao, Geonho Park, Xinyi Yang, Baiyan Qi, Muyang Lin, Hao Huang, Yizhou Bian, Hongjie Hu, Xiangjun Chen, Ray S. Wu, Boyu Liu, Wentong Yue, Chengchangfeng Lu, Ruotao Wang, Pranavi Bheemreddy, Siyu Qin, Arthur Lam, Keith A. Wear, Michael Andre, Erik B. Kistler, David W. Newell, Sheng Xu
This study introduces a conformal ultrasound patch for hands-free, continuous monitoring of cerebral blood flow. The patch uses 2 MHz ultrasound waves to reduce skull-induced attenuation and phase aberration, and a copper mesh shielding layer to improve signal-to-noise ratio by 5 dB. Ultrafast ultrasound imaging based on diverging waves accurately renders the circle of Willis in 3D, while focused ultrasound waves allow continuous recording of blood flow spectra at selected locations. The patch's accuracy is validated against a conventional TCD probe, showing mean differences and standard deviations of −1.51 ± 4.34 cm s⁻¹, −0.84 ± 3.06 cm s⁻¹, and −0.50 ± 2.55 cm s⁻¹ for peak systolic velocity, mean flow velocity, and end diastolic velocity, respectively. The patch also demonstrates continuous blood flow spectra during different interventions, including carotid compression, handgrip, Valsalva maneuver, word generation, and visual stimulation. Long-term monitoring during drowsiness identifies intracranial B waves, which are important for understanding the glymphatic system and disease recovery. The conformal ultrasound patch offers significant advantages over conventional TCD probes in terms of comfort, motion tolerance, and extended recording capabilities, making it a valuable tool for clinical and research applications in neurovascular diagnostics and studies.This study introduces a conformal ultrasound patch for hands-free, continuous monitoring of cerebral blood flow. The patch uses 2 MHz ultrasound waves to reduce skull-induced attenuation and phase aberration, and a copper mesh shielding layer to improve signal-to-noise ratio by 5 dB. Ultrafast ultrasound imaging based on diverging waves accurately renders the circle of Willis in 3D, while focused ultrasound waves allow continuous recording of blood flow spectra at selected locations. The patch's accuracy is validated against a conventional TCD probe, showing mean differences and standard deviations of −1.51 ± 4.34 cm s⁻¹, −0.84 ± 3.06 cm s⁻¹, and −0.50 ± 2.55 cm s⁻¹ for peak systolic velocity, mean flow velocity, and end diastolic velocity, respectively. The patch also demonstrates continuous blood flow spectra during different interventions, including carotid compression, handgrip, Valsalva maneuver, word generation, and visual stimulation. Long-term monitoring during drowsiness identifies intracranial B waves, which are important for understanding the glymphatic system and disease recovery. The conformal ultrasound patch offers significant advantages over conventional TCD probes in terms of comfort, motion tolerance, and extended recording capabilities, making it a valuable tool for clinical and research applications in neurovascular diagnostics and studies.
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